Live Video: Ghostigital at KEX Hostel

Want to learn a little bit about politics and culture in Iceland? Just look to Einar Örn. The former member of The Sugarcubes, and a venerated godfather of Icelandic punk through early 80’s bands Purrkur Pillnikk and KUKL, was recently elected to Reykjavik’s city council. And yet, whatever respectability might come with, or be expected from, that job hasn’t dulled his edge. (In fact, Einar was elected along with current mayor of Reykjavik, actor and comedian Jón Gnarr, as part of the far left-leaning Best Party.) With Ghostigital, his current project with NYC-based Icelandic producer Curver, Einar Örn offers a frenetic feast of paranoid and delusional ramblings, buzzing electronics and jerky dance beats. As he spits and spews about sniffing trousers he found on the ground or needing to relieve himself of great ideas in a restroom, Curver twists and distorts his vocals while simultaneously manipulating beats and textures. Their third studio album, Division of Culture & Tourism (Einar actually currently chairs the city’s committee for culture and tourism), features contributions from David Byrne, Damon Albarn, Nick Zinner, and King Buzzo, among others, and is as confounding as it is appealing. But it is all meant to be experienced rather than discussed. We admit that perhaps 9AM for Seattle listeners may have been a bit early to digest their performance during our broadcast from Iceland Airwaves ’12, but you can watch these videos now in the safety of your home, of their session at KEX Hostel, during one of the stormiest days in the city’s recent history, as Einar Örn twists, shouts and spits: